The Top 10 Hiking Adventures in Greater Morgantown

Enjoy the sunshine and take a hike down a less-traveled path!

With summer right around the corner, it’s a great time to plan your next hiking adventure in Greater Morgantown. With a warm breeze and colorful flowers, you can take a hike down your favorite trail and experience the scenic views. Looking to escape to a new footpath? Try out one of these top ten locations that are only a short drive from downtown Morgantown!

Coopers Rock State Forest

Coopers Rock State Forest is one of Greater Morgantown’s most popular destinations. With 21 different trails weaving nearly 50 miles through the beautiful woodlands of West Virginia, Coopers Rock State Forest offers easy to moderate hiking trails to fit you and your family’s hiking style.

Highlights

Be on the lookout for the eco-sculptures located near the main overlook of Coopers Rock State Forest!

Roadside Trail – An easy trail that leads from the parking lot located near the forest entrance to the main scenic overlook, a 1,200-foot drop to the Cheat River Canyon.

Rattlesnake Trail – Winds along the rocky cliffs parallel to the rim of the Cheat River Canyon.

Raven Rock – Leads to the Raven’s Rock overlook, offering a different, yet a spectacular view of the Cheat River Canyon.

Rhododendron Trail – The perfect place to see the state flower, the rhododendron. Along the trail, the Henry Clay Iron Furnace that was used to produce iron in the 1800s can be found.

Virgin Hemlock Trail – An easy one hour hike through a hemlock trees grove dating around 300 years old. Listen for the stream trickling along the trail.

Cheat Lake Park and Trail

Cheat Lake Backwaters

The Cheat Lake Trail is a 4.5-mile long trail that follows the Lake Lynn shoreline. Original components of a railroad bridge lead you over Cheat Lake’s calm and shady backwaters in an otherwise densely wooded area.

A nature viewing area is located at the southern tip of the trail, perfect for viewing migratory water birds.

Huge millstones can be found along the trail from area grist mills that were in operation before the turn of the century.

WVU Core Arboretum

The WVU Core Arboretum is an escape from the hustle and bustle within Morgantown city limits. Tucked between Monongahela Boulevard and the Monongahela River, The WVU Core Arboretum has a variety of natural habitats in its 3.5 miles of trails. Several hundred species of native West Virginia trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants are scattered throughout the Arboretum.

Highlights

The Amphitheater – The WVU Core Arboretum supports teaching and offers an eighty-seat facility used as an open-air meeting place.

Interpretive signs are throughout the Arboretum to help hikers identify various flora. Some of the large trees are over 200 years old.

Spring ephemeral wildflowers can be seen from late March to early May. The Sheldon Trail and Rumsey Trail will offer you the most wildflower sightings.

Caperton Rail-Trail passes through the Arboretum, linking visitors to a large, far-reaching, and growing rail-trail system.

A small coal mine sits recessed in Morgantown Sandstone on the Cliff Trail.

A floodplain trail leads past a lagoon full of cattails and aquatic plants growing in the wet area that was formerly a river channel.

Cranesville Swamp

Cranesville Swamp is one of the few remaining arboreal bogs in the southern United States and is an astonishing 1,650-acre preserve. Positioned in a natural bowl or “frost pocket,” the climate is more consistent with northerly regions allowing for the swamp to harbor many plants, birds and mammals that are normally only seen further north.

cranberry, sedge, and sundew

Highlights

Lucky visitors may spot the rare northern water shrew or catch a glimpse of a black bear rummaging through the shrub thickets surrounding Muddy Creek.

Look for the 19 different plant communities that flourish in the unusual environment.

Bring binoculars to catch a glimpse of more than 100 bird species, such as alder flycatcher or blackburnian warbler.

Allegheny Trail

The Allegheny Trail, near Bruceton Mills, is the longest footpath located primarily in West Virginia. The Trail passes through the Allegheny Mountains and into Preston County for a total of 330 miles before connecting with the Appalachian Trail, the longest hiking-only footpath in the world.

Highlights

This section of the Allegheny Trail is located on rural country roads that are seldom traveled.

These roads are situated on high plateaus and offer astounding views of the Preston County farmland and hay meadows where bobolinks perform courtship flights in May.

Intriguing historical sites such as a restored one-room schoolhouse, two old graveyards, and the Lantz Ridge Church can be seen along the Trail.

The Trail is parallel to the Cheat River and traverses Big Sandy Creek making for great fishing opportunities.

The Monongahela National Forest can be entered via the Allegheny Trail and is considered one of the most ecologically diverse national forests in the country.

Deckers Creek Trail

Deckers Creek Trail gets its name from the stream it follows. Starting at Hazel Ruby McQuain Riverfront Park in Morgantown to slightly west of Reedsville, W.Va in Preston County, the rail-trail follows scenic Deckers Creek upstream with an elevation change of 1,000 feet for more than 19 miles. The scenic landscapes are secluded with hardwoods, hemlock, rhododendron, and rock outcroppings.

Highlights

There are many different atmospheres to view along the Trail. Beginning in city limits, hikers have access to Marilla Park, neighboring restaurants, and food stores. The Trail quickly moves into habitats of fields and farms, dense woods, hemlock groves, and wetlands.

There are many opportunities to view a variety of birds.

The Trail opens up to Deckers Creek Gorge just outside of city limits where hikers can view spectacular waterfalls and sought-after Class VI rapids.

You may spot some highly experienced kayakers and rock climbers while on the Trail.

Be on the lookout for close-up views of two active limestone quarries.

Less than one mile from the Trail on Route 92 is Arthurdale, the nation’s first New Deal Homestead.

Visit the Heritage District and Museum that is near the Trail.

The West Virginia Botanic Garden

The West Virginia Botanic Garden was formerly known as Tibbs Run Reservoir which supplied water to the Morgantown area from 1912 to 1969. Some remnants of the old structures are still visible on the property and can be seen from the Reservoir Loop Trail. All trails are relatively flat and include the Forest Trail, Tibbs Crossing Trail and the Farside Trail.

Hammocks are placed throughout the Garden for hikers to relax can relax and enjoy the natural bounty. The hammocks are part of the Botanical Garden’s newest art installation project, “Hammock Haven.”

Monongahela River Trail

The Monongahela River Trail meanders through a wooded river valley. As its name suggests, there are many scenic views of the Monongahela River and an occasional waterfall may be found while hiking along the Trail.

Source: http://www.railstotrails.org/

Highlights

Connection to a much larger system of trails that spiral throughout Morgantown.

The Trail is known for its variety of wildflowers in the spring.

Big Bear Lake Campgrounds

Big Bear Lake Campgrounds is a leading hiking destination only 45 minutes outside of Morgantown. Its four looping trails offer varying degrees of difficulty, ranging from eight to 20 miles long for a total of 50 diverse miles. Nestled in the heart of the Appalachian Mountains, hikers enjoy the challenge of mountain trails with some of the best foliage and terrain on the east coast.

Highlights

Set in a lush wooded environment, Big Bear Lake is surrounded by over 5000 acres of property to explore and enjoy. It has become a haven for many outdoor enthusiasts and nature lovers alike.

Cathedral State Park

source: fineartamerica.com

Cathedral State Park is a 133-acre ancient hemlock forest of majestic proportions. Trees stand up to 90 feet high and 21 feet in circumference. Plus, more than 170 species of vascular flora and over 50 species of wildflowers have been cataloged.

Highlights

The forest is virtually untouched and reflects what the landscape would look like if other wooded areas had never been timbered.

The Park houses one of the last living commemorations of the vast virgin hemlock forest that once flourished in the Appalachian highlands.